


The Woman with the Sign

by AXEe



Series: Head Games [4]
Category: Supergirl (TV 2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Human, Alternate Universe - No Powers, F/F, Homelessness, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Slight conspiracy theory, Social Commentary
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-12-06
Updated: 2018-06-24
Packaged: 2019-02-11 05:34:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 11,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12928584
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AXEe/pseuds/AXEe
Summary: The woman with the sign mesmerized her, drawing her in...





	1. Vagabond

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! More GD Human AUs here. This time we'll be doing a slight bit of social commentary today, enjoy :=)

******

“Spare some change?”

Alex turned to the speaker. The woman sitting on the stone bench outside the main building of Lord Technologies was clearly homeless, her clothes rumpled and smudged with dirt, a small cardboard sign sat next to her that simply read ‘AM VETERN PLEASE HELP’, there was a streak of white in her long dark, matted hair, but Alex couldn’t tell if that was grey hair, dyed, or just some kind of stain.

But it was her eyes that caught Alex

They were a striking grey-green in color, and there was a distinct hint of pride in them, this woman may have been homeless, she may have been forced to beg strangers and passersby for money, but she still had her pride, she even held herself proudly, regally, like a solider

“Take a picture, it’ll last longer” she suddenly sneered, clearly mad at being stared at, breaking Alex out her thoughts

“Sorry,” blushing, she dug around in her pockets, coming up with about seventy-five cents in small coins and awkwardly handed them to the woman “sorry, that’s all I got” she apologized, wishing she could give more, the woman shrugged and pocketed the coinage, seemingly dismissing Alex. Still frowning, Alex turned and continued on into the lobby of Lord Technologies

“Hey, Danvers, that homeless chick bothering you or something?” the security guard asked as she signed in

“What? No, no, she’s fine” she replied

“You sure?” he asked

“I’m _sure_ , Frank,” she sighed, getting tired of this kind of conversation “I know Mr. Lord doesn’t like people begging outside the building, but just leave her alone, she’s not harming anyone”

“OK,” Frank sighed, clearly not convinced “but she starts bothering people I’m gonna have to kick her to the curb” he warned, Alex smirked as she thought back to the sign which had declared that the woman was a veteran and then thought of Frank’s ever-expanding beet gut which got larger everyday thanks to his diet of doughnuts and coffee

“Somehow, I don’t think you’ll be able to” she warned

******

Throughout the rest of the day, Alex found herself thinking back to the woman outside, something about her drew Alex in like a moth to a flame. And while on her lunch break, Alex found herself hoping to catch a glimpse of the woman as she headed out to the little sandwich shop across the street, even though she knew logically that woman had probably already left, having either been run off by building security, or had otherwise moved on.

National City was no stranger to homelessness, and Alex tried to help whenever she could, she knew of course that the few amounts of small change she gave away had little impact on the grand scheme of things, but she felt better for it (even though she wished she could give more), and happily gave away whatever she could, not carrying what the person in question wanted the money for, drugs? Alcohol? She didn’t care; all that mattered to her was helping someone in need.

Leaving the building for that little sandwich shop across the street, Alex had hoped to catch a glimpse of the mysterious woman. The woman was no different from the dozens or so other homeless who appeared on National City’s streets far more often they used to. But still, Alex hoped to see her again.

Instead what she saw made her blood boil.

She had just crossed back from the sandwich shop when she heard the laughter, glancing over she saw the same woman who she’d met earlier now being _beaten_ by what looked like a bunch of teenagers

“HEY!!” dropping her order Alex charged forward, slamming into Asshole One like a linebacker. Pinning him to the ground by his designer jacket, she drew back a fist and slammed it down onto his nose, mentally relishing in the distinct _crack_ that resulted “punk!” she stood up, noticing that his buddies had scattered the second she’d slammed into him.

Ignoring him, she turned back to his victim, noticing that woman was slowly sitting up, wincing. There was a tear in her jacket and coins were scattered everywhere “you all right?” Alex asked, the woman grimaced and nodded “you sure?” Alex asked as she crouched down next to her “they were hitting you pretty hard, you might have internal injuries”

“I’m fine, I’m fine!” the woman snarled, swatting Alex’s hands away “why don’t you just go back to your ivory tower, princess and leave me alone?” she sneered, Alex glanced past her up at the towering monstrosity that was Lord Tech

“Actually I hate Maxwell Lord with a vengeance” she said

“Then you’re one out of every idiot in this city” the woman grumbled as she stooped down to gather as many of the fallen coins as she could find

“Wait here a sec” Alex instructed, she hurried back to where she’d dropped her bag and then hurried back

“What’s this?” the woman wondered as she scowled at the sandwich Alex was now offering her, looking at it like it might explode any second

“A peace offering,” Alex explained “since you obviously won’t let me get you to a hospital the least I could do is get you something to eat”

The woman swatted Alex’s hands away

“I don’t need your charity” she spat, straightening her jacket, she ignored Alex

Sighing, Alex set the sandwich down on the bench the woman had been sitting on and left it there was she walked back inside. Glancing over she shoulder she watched the woman suddenly seem to sag as she was confronted with sandwich, clearly her pride and her hunger were at war. Finally, she picked up the still-wrapped sandwich and tucked it under jacket before standing up and stalking away.

It seemed that hunger had won out, and Alex still wasn’t sure why this woman was so fascinating to her. Must be the eyes, she decided…


	2. Wolf in Sheep's Clothing

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter TWO! Enjoy :=)

******

“Ah, Alex, wait up”

Alex groaned and contemplated letting the elevator just shut, but Maxwell Lord was her boss, and she needed the job. Sticking her arm out, she caught the doors and held it open for Max to slid in

“Mr. Lord” she acknowledged

“You look good, Alex,” he commented “everything going smoothly in the lab?”

“Yes” Alex nodded, tensely. Why, out of every woman there, did he have to fixate on her? Was it because she didn’t fawn over her like all the others?

“So, I heard you helped some homeless woman earlier this afternoon” he commented suddenly

“I did,” Alex nodded “she was being beaten by a bunch of teenage punks, I couldn’t just ‘not’ do something” she pointed out

“Hmm,” Max began “still, if those people didn’t keep loitering outside my property, they might not get hurt”

Alex scowled at him as the elevator dinged and stopped at her floor

“This is my stop” she muttered as she stalked out onto the main lobby, leaving Max in the elevator

“Hey, Danvers,” Frank greeted her “saw you defend that homeless chick today, good on you” he praised

Alex smirked as she signed out

“Well, at least someone’s happy” she chuckled, impatiently tapping her foot as Frank checked her ID badge and logged her out of the system, putting the badge away for safekeeping

“There you go” he grinned as he shook her hand

“Thanks, Frank”

“You in a hurry to get somewhere?” he asked “thought we could have drinks” he teased

Alex chuckled. He was about twenty years older than her and happily married, but he enjoyed harmlessly teasing some of the women working in the building. Most didn’t complain, and those that did Frank left alone

“Can’t,” Alex replied “got to help my sister get ready for a date and then get ready for one myself” she explained

“Lucky you” Frank chuckled…

******

“C’mon, Kara,” Alex sighed “you can do this”

“No, I can’t, no, I can’t” Kara frantically shook her head as she paced

Alex sighed as she stabbed her spoon down at her ice cream tub again

“C’mon, it’s just a date. You don’t like him you don’t have to see him again,” she pointed out “unlike me” she muttered as she thought of that guy Sam who’d asked her out tonight

“Come with me?” Kara pleaded

“What? No!” Alex shook her head

“Why not?!” Kara demanded

“Because it’ll be weird!” Alex objected “ _‘Hi, James, this is my sister Alex, but don’t worry, we still have fun tonight, just ignore her’_. Yeah, not going to work”

Kara pouted

“Oh no! No, no, no you don’t!” Alex abandoned her ice cream and grabbed the dress that Kara had chosen for tonight and threw it at her “dress. Put on. Now” she ordered

“Meanie” Kara pouted as she snatched the dress from Alex and stalked to the bedroom with all the air of a victim of torture

“Drama queen!” Alex called out after her….

******

Alex didn’t know how Kara’s date was progressing, but she hoped that it was better than her own. Her date, Sam, had spent the last hour talking about himself or making suggestive, not-so-subtle comments while he downed far more alcohol than was polite. Finally, the ordeal ended and Alex gave Sam’s suggestion to ‘sharing a cab’ a firm and resounding no.

Stalking out of the restaurant, Alex scowled at the sight of Lord Technologies looming above the area. She really needed a better job, she thought as she stalked down the sidewalk towards her car. Sure the pay was good, so were the benefits, but the work wasn’t fulfilling. In fact the only thing it seemed to be fulfilling was Maxwell Lord’s ego.

She froze at the sound of footsteps behind her, quickening her own pace and trying to keep calm. It could have been just someone heading in the same direction she was, no need to get so worked up.

A hand suddenly latched on to her arm.

Spinning around, Alex gasped as her date Sam suddenly, violently, swung her into a wall. Stars exploded before her eyes as she slipped and slid down to the ground. Twisting her head up, she watched as a dark figure suddenly tackled Sam, one arm wrapping around his neck as the same homeless woman that Alex had helped earlier now violently wrenched Sam’s body backwards

“Do you know how _easily_ I can break your miserable fucking neck right now?!” she snarled “huh? Do you know how easily I could screw it up?! Huh?! Leave you lying in your own filth, unable to move, to speak?!”

“Hey! Hey!” Alex staggered to her feet “he gets it! Let him go! Let him go!”

With a snarl, the woman tossed Sam aside like garbage

“If I ever catch you doing that again, to her or to anyone else, I will kill you” she warned

“Bitch!” Sam spat, getting up and staggering away

“Thank you,” Alex sighed once he was out of sight “don’t think he would done anything, but thanks”

“Yes he would have,” the woman stated “you rejected him. To him that makes him less of a man in his mind” she explained

Alex stamped down the shiver at the thought of what _could_ have happened

“Well…thanks regardless,” Alex muttered awkwardly, suddenly feeling weird next to this woman, like she shouldn’t flaunt her good paying job in front of this woman’s nose by wearing a fancy dress and makeup “are, are you OK?” she asked “after, after today, I mean?” she added

The woman chuckled

“Fine,” she shrugged, absenting tucking a necklace back under her shirt “you better get home and lock your door” she advised as she turned and began to walk away

“Hey,” Alex called out after her “never got your name”

The woman looked back over her shoulder, smirking

“Astra” she replied….


	3. What You Are About to See Never Happened

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short double update! Enjoy

******

Astra winced as her bruised ribs pulled.

She was far from ‘fine’.

In fact a trip to the ER wouldn’t be such a bad idea right about now, since she had very likely broken at least one rib and cracked two, if not three, more.

But no. The last time she had ever asked for help, had ever 'trusted' anyone, she’d lost her entire family and had half of her life be deemed ‘classified above top secret’ by the government. No, she was better on her own.

Winching, she lowered herself onto a park bench, shivering as she drew her jacket closer, the cold metal of her dogtags digging into her skin.

The woman’s face still ran through her mind, the shine of her hair, and the way her eyes sparkled.

No. She shook her head, she couldn’t— _wouldn’t_ —get close to anyone. Not again.

Not after Alura. Not after Kara. And certainly not after that whole snafu in Kasnia. How many people had died that time, she wondered, and how many of those deaths had been deemed 'acceptable casualties' by the government? And many more had been covered up? Hidden away from prying eyes to preserve the moral sanctity of the United States government?

No, best not to think about it. Suffice to say, she wasn't willing to trust anyone again

**Never again** , she vowed

But still…

What was it about that girl that drew her in?

Shaking it off, she stiffly lowered herself down onto the bench. She was tired, but the likelihood of her actually getting sleep was practically nil. The nightmares saw to that.

Huffing out a breath, she closed her eyes, the way that girl had smiled at her in thanks briefly flashing before her mind’s eye as restless sleep claimed her…


	4. Task Force X

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter FOUR! Enjoy!

******

Alex stepped out into the sunny day outside Lord Tech with a bit of a spring in her step. She wasn’t really sure why to be honest; she had just come from court to contest a traffic ticket, and her direct superior was still angry at her and her team for not delivering on their promise to have that new biofuel formula on Max Lord’s desk, but, for now, nothing could damper her good mood.

She paused as she saw Astra again. It had been a few weeks since she’d last seen the other woman. Since that time, Sam had been fired and slapped with sexual harassment charges from two other women working at Lord Tech and from an assault charge from Alex herself.

Still feeling peppy, Alex approached the other woman

“Astra,” she called out, waving. She stopped as she saw Astra…twitch, she was moving oddly, spastically, one hand came up to her head and rubbed at her temple almost frantically, like she had a itch she couldn’t quite scratch, and she was mumbling under her breath. Alex slowed, suddenly worried

“Astra?” she tried again

Astra’s head snapped up, looking directly at Alex but clearly not seeing her

“Astra?” she parroted “who’s that? Not me, not me,” the hand at her temple rubbed harder “itchy,” she mumbled “scratch, scratch”

Alex sighed. Astra, it seemed, wasn’t home, and probably hadn’t been for a long while

“I’m sorry” she sighed. Reaching into her pocket, she dug out the last of her spare change, and, carefully taking Astra’s free hand, dropped the coins into her palm. Astra blinked up at her, confused, a brief glimmer of recognition flittering across her face before it was gone and she went back to mumbling.

Now feeling like scum, Alex trudged back inside the building, her lunch forgotten…

******

Astra looked down at the coins in her hand. Nearly two whole dollars now rested in her palm. She looked back up at Alex’s retreating form, suddenly seized by the urge to get up, to go after her, to explain that it had all been an act, to apologize, to try and explain just _why_ she’d been pretending to be crazy.

But not, not yet, not now, when she was so close.

 _‘Not yet,’_ she thought as she watched Alex slink back inside _‘but soon, kid. Soon, I’ll find you and try to tell you about me’_

Feeling lower than she already was, she pocketed the change and pulled her jacket around her tighter. Several people who would have probably given her some spare change passed by, but this time she didn’t bother acknowledging them.

Why bother? She was already feeling like dirt, no need to be treated as such…

******

The rest of Alex’s day passed without incident, but she had lost a significant amount of her previous good cheer. Signing out that night, she waved goodbye to Frank and stepped out into the chilly night air. It was nearly Christmas and Lord Tech and other buildings were already aglow with holiday decorations. Normally, Alex would have been quite delighted to see the lights, but not now, not when people like Astra were stuck out in the cold.

She hoped Astra had somewhere warm to sleep tonight.

She was heading to her car when someone cleared their throat behind her. Turning, she saw Astra standing behind her, hands awkwardly stuffed into her pockets

“Astra, hey” Alex greeted lamely

Astra nodded back politely

“I….don’t even know why I’m here,” she began “I just saw you over here and then…,” she trailed off and then sighed “look, earlier today, I knew that you were there, I wasn’t actually having a breakdown, I just…,” she trailed off and turned around “I’ll go, never mind”

“Wait,” Alex called suddenly. Astra stopped “if you’re not…you know….crazy, then why would you pretend to be?” Alex wondered

Astra smirked

“It’d take too long to explain,” she shrugged “suffice to say, everyone ignores the homeless woman talking to herself”

“I don’t,” Alex stated firmly. She cautiously approached the other woman “explain it to me” she challenged

Astra smirked and shook her head

“Not out here” she declared

“There’s a diner two blocks over,” Alex pointed out “we can go there”

Astra smirked and looked down at her dirt-smudged clothing and fingered her unkempt hair

“Don’t think they’d let me in looking like this” she remarked

“Probably,” Alex agreed “but I can be pretty persuasive when I want to be,” she pointed out “after all, I’ve got you thinking of agreeing, don’t I?”

Astra smirked…

******

The diner was mostly empty, and—much to Astra’s great relief—warm. She warmed her hands around the cup of coffee that she’d bought with her supply of pocket change, thankfully, the diner had an ‘unlimited refill’ policy and the initial cup only cost a dollar fifty, which was stretching Astra’s meager resources, but Alex had quickly given her a buck fifty in response, and shouted her down when Astra had protested.

Now both women sat silently across from one another

“I used to be in the military,” Astra began, staring into her coffee cup “special forces, to be exact. Back then I still believed in that whole ‘Mom, Dad, and apple pie’ piece of shit line they feed you in basic training,” she paused to slowly sip from the coffee, enjoying the way the warm liquid slid down her throat “I can’t tell you everything,” she continued “but let’s just say that I got real good at my job. A little too good, actually. Got too over confident, cocky,” she paused to take another sip of coffee, it was crap coffee, but it was warm “anyway,” she continued “one day, I was on an assignment, I can’t say where, but it was a messy place. I and my team were supposed to back up a detachment of Marines already on the ground. Somebody on the ground spotted us and started shooting,” she paused and took a breath “funny thing about getting shot, it doesn’t ‘feel’ like getting shot, feels more like you got punched”

“So what happened?” Alex asked quietly

Astra smirked

“There were twenty-six of us,” she explained “only two survived, I’m one of them. Now, after dragging my sorry ass back to base, I found out something very interesting. Turns out most of those deaths had been caused by defective body armor. The ceramic plates that made up the stuff, rather than absorbing the force of the impact had shattered instead. If the bullet didn’t kill you, then the dozens of pieces of shrapnel would” she explained bitterly

“Well, didn’t the government do something?” Alex demanded

Astra laughed suddenly. A bitter hollow sound

“Oh, they did something all right. They buried it. _‘the loss of the lives of twenty-four operatives, while regrettable, cannot be allowed to become public knowledge, as doing so would compromise U.S. special forces/intelligence operations worldwide’_ ,” she quoted “anyone who spoke up, who tried to get them to take responsibility was erased”

“Erased?” Alex repeated “you mean…?” she trailed off

Astra snorted

“This isn’t the movies, kid,” she dismissed “killing someone to silence them is too messy. First you have to make sure that the guy who killed the person you wanted shut up stays quiet himself, then you’ll probably have to kill the guy who kills him, and so on and so,” she shook her head “no. When I say ‘erased’ I meant literally. As in ‘there’s no record of my every having existed’. Bank account, credit score, driver’s license, even my birth certificate, all gone. Legally, on paper, I’m nobody, which means that I’m not entailed to healthcare benefits, a military pension, or even housing. Which is why I’m left to beg for spare change on the street”

For a long moment, Alex was silent, slowly absorbing the information. As much as she didn’t _want_ to believe it, to write it off as the delusional rants of a crazy woman, she found that it all seemed far too plausible to not be true

“If that’s true,” she began “then why were you hanging outside Lord Tech? What do they have to do with it?”

“Because Maxwell Lord made that defective body armor in the first place,” Astra explained “Max is very good at rationalizing his morality. Body armor is designed to ‘save’ lives, not take them, so therefore it isn’t a ‘weapon’. So Max can still get that lucrative defense contract without losing the approval of all the weak-minded idiots out there who see him as god,” she took a breath “if I could get evidence, make people _see_ …” she trailed off

“Jesus” Alex swore, feeling physically ill

“Of course, what do I know?” Astra shrugged dismissively “I’m just some crazy homeless woman, after all”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> According to a U.S. federal survey conducted in January of 2013 there was an estimated 57,849 homeless veterans in the United States, many suffer from PTSD or other related mental health issues. According to the Veteran's Association (VA) just eight percent (8%) of those veterans were adult females, and that homeless veterans of both genders were overrepresented in the homeless population compared to the general population. By 2016 it was estimated that there were about 39,000 homeless veterans nationwide. In military sizing, that's one entire Corps


	5. Honor the Charge They Made

******

_There were twenty million English who talked of England’s might_  
_There were twenty broken troopers who lacked a bed for the night_  
_They had neither food nor money; they had neither service nor trade_  
_They were only shiftless soldiers, the last of the Light Brigade_

The air was cold and gusty as the two women exited the diner, each lost in their own thoughts. For her part, Alex was still trying to wrap her head around such a ludicrous, yet plausible-sounding idea as Astra’s tale was, it didn’t seem _real_ , and yet, Alex couldn’t convince herself that it at least wasn’t partly true.

Just last week there’d been a story in the news about former veterans who were being deported simply because they weren’t permanent residents. The idea that the government would ‘erase’ an operative’s life to cover up the truth about a botched mission was starting to seem more and more plausible every second she thought about it.

_They felt that life was fleeting; they knew not that art was long;_  
_That though they were dying of famine, they lived in deathless song;_  
_They asked for a little money, to keep the wolf from the door;_  
_And the thirty million English sent twenty pounds and four!_

“Astra,” Alex began “you got somewhere to stay tonight?”

Astra smirked

“I’ll be fine,” she promised “you go on home”

“Astra…” Alex began “I could…” she trailed off as Astra cringed and looked away. Astra’s pride, her dignity, such as it was, was all that she had left, and she wasn’t ready to give it up just yet

_They laid their heads together that were scarred and lined and grey;_  
_Keen were the Russian sabers, but want was keener than they_  
_And an old troop-sergeant muttered, ‘Let us go to the man who writes_  
_The things on Balaclava the kiddies at school recites’_

“Look,” Alex dug into her bag and emerged with a pen and one of her business cards “here,” she quickly scribbled something down on it and handed it to Astra

“What’s this?” Astra asked, taking the slim card suspiciously

“My address,” Alex sighed, suddenly wondering what had possessed her to give up her address to a woman she barely knew, a woman who’s sanity was still in question no less “and my phone number,” she added, nodding at the card “there’s probably a pay phone still working somewhere,”

_They went without bands or colours, a regiment ten-file strong_  
_To look for the Master-singer who crowned them all in his song_  
_And, waiting his servant’s order, by the garden gate they stayed_  
_A desolate little cluster, the last of the Light Brigade_

_They strove to stand at attention, to straighten the toil-bowed back_  
_They drilled on an empty stomach, the loose-knit files fell slack_  
_With stooping of weary shoulders, in garments tattered and frayed_  
_They shambled into his presence, the last of the Light Brigade_

“Take it,” Alex insisted when Astra tried to give the card back “look, even if you never call, or never use it, just _take it_ , and…you know…look me up sometime” she chuckled at corny she sounded right then

“Why are you helping me?” Astra wondered

“Because someone should” Alex reiterated firmly

_The old troop-sergeant was spokesman, and ‘Beggin’ your pardon,’ he said_  
_‘You wrote ‘o the Light Brigade, sir. Here’s all that isn’t dead._  
_An’ its all come true what you wrote, sir, regardin’ the mouth of hell_  
_For we’re all of us nigh to the workhouse, an’ we thought we’d come and tell_

_‘No, thank you, we don’t want food, sir, but couldn’t you take an’ write_  
_A sort of ‘to be continued’ and ‘see next page’ o’ the fight?_  
_We think that someone has blundered, sir, an’ couldn’t you tell ‘em how?_  
_You wrote we were heroes once, sir. Please write we are starving now’_

Astra stared at the card in her hand for a moment and then pocketed it

“Good night, Alex” she said softly

“Good night,” Alex replied, then, with only a minor hesitation, pulled Astra into a brief, but firm, one armed hug “stay warm tonight, yeah?” she asked as she pulled back

Astra chuckled humorlessly

“I’ll try” she muttered

With one final wave goodbye, they parted ways, Alex to her car, and Astra to journey further down the street, wrapping her jacket around her tighter as the wind picked up.

Alex watched her in the rearview mirror, feeling helpless as she watched Astra get smaller and smaller

_The poor little army departed, limping and lean and forlorn_  
_And the heart of the Master-singer grew hot with that ‘the scorn of scorn!’_  
_And he wrote for them wonderful verses that swept the land like flame,_  
_Till the fatted souls of the English were scourged with the thing called shame!_

Turning the corner, Alex didn’t see Astra look back over her shoulder; she didn’t see the tears silently falling down Astra’s cheeks, the way the other woman shivered in the cold, how she held her coat tighter.

_O twenty million English that babble of England’s might_  
_Behold there are twenty heroes who lack their food for to-night_  
_Our children’s children are lisping to ‘honour the charge they made’_  
_And we leave to the streets and the workhouse the charge of the Light Brigade!_

No, Alex—like so many others, through no fault of her own—saw…nothing…

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "The Last of the Light Brigade" by Rudyard Kipling


	6. Evidence?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double update! :=)

******

“That’s great, Kara,” Alex grinned into the phone as she sat curled under a blanket on her couch, a tub of ice cream resting on her lap “so, you and James seem pretty…chummy lately” she teased

“ _We’re just friends, Alex_ ” Kara exclaimed “ _besides, I don’t hear you going on any dates lately_ ” she teased

“Yeah, yeah, rub it in why don’t you?” Alex snorted. She paused as she suddenly thought of Astra, Astra with the sad, haunted eyes. She could date Astra, she knew, homeless or not, if only Astra would let her _in_. It had been a week or so since she’d last seen Astra, since they’d talked in that diner, and she hadn’t seen Astra since. Of course, if Astra really was telling the truth about her military training, then it was entirely within the realm of possibility that Astra had been there all along and that Alex simply hadn’t seen her

“ _Oh, darn! Sorry, Alex, got to go, Ms. Grant’s calling me_ ” Kara suddenly chirped

“You’re _still_ there?” Alex demanded incredulously, double checking the time

“ _Yeah,_ ” Kara sighed “ _sorry, got to go. Love you_ ”

“Love you too,” Alex grinned. She had just ended the call when someone knocked at her door, pounded in it actually.

Getting up, Alex peered through the peephole, quickly throwing open the door

“Astra!” she exclaimed

Astra grimaced as she held her side, blood rapidly staining her shirt

“Sorry,” she panted out “but I didn’t know where el—oh…fuck!”

Lunging, Alex gasped as she caught Astra as the other women fell forward, unconscious…

******

Astra awoke to being warm. It was a largely foreign sensation to her now. Gasping, she sat up, biting back a pained shout at the sharp burning sensation in her side as a pair of hands tried to hold her down

With a roar, Astra lunged, pinning her assailant to the floor, a hand braced across her enemy’s throat.

“Get off me you fucker!!!”

Astra blinked

“Alex?” she asked as she stared at the young woman now pinned beneath her

“No! The Tooth Fairy!” Alex spat back “yes, its me and would you care to explain why you came pounding on my door at ten PM covered in blood?!” she demanded as Astra awkwardly untangled herself from Alex, leaning back against the couch, panting hard as she came down off the adrenaline

“Blood’s not mine” she explained

“Yeah, that’s not as comforting as you think,” Alex spat as she sat up “now. Start from the beginning”

“Well…”

“Oh my god! _Please_ tell me that you did _not_ just break into Lord Tech looking for evidence?” Alex suddenly exclaimed

“Uh…no?”

“Astra! My god!” Alex ran her hands through her hair

“Look, its wasn’t all for naught,” Astra tried “firstly, I didn’t kill anyone, and secondly I got it” she triumphantly held up a flash drive

“Who’s blood is it?” Alex asked instead of commenting on Astra’s success

“Your date’s” Astra explained

“My date—Sam?” Alex blinked “he was fired like a month ago”

“Yeah, well, seems he didn’t take too kindly to that,” Astra shrugged “I found him trashing the place when I got in,” she paused “you don’t mind that pinned all the blame for the trespassing on him do you?”

Alex groaned

“Just…you know what? Go and take a shower, you stink” she finally declared

“Gee thanks,” Astra scoffed as she stood up “you don’t exactly smell all that great either, princess” she added

“Jerk” Alex spat

“Bitch” Astra countered, moving closer to Alex, getting into her personal space

“Ass”

“Busybody”

“God! Why did I ever feel sorry for you?”

“I don’t know, you tell me”

They were just inches away from each other now, practically nose to nose. Alex sucked in harsh breath, breathing in the stench of body odor, blood, and dirt, and something beneath that, something subtle and earthy, something that was uniquely ‘Astra’.

Feeling unsteady, she took a step back

“Go and take a shower,” she finally mumbled “I’ll make you something to eat”


	7. Bombs Bursting Through the Air

******

The water was warm.

Astra languished in the shower far longer than was strictly necessary. It had been who knew how long since she’d had a warm shower, and her stomach was already rumbling at the thought of a hot meal, she didn’t care what it was or how it looked or tasted as long as it was _warm_.

A loud boom suddenly pierced the air along with a bright flash of light…

******

Alex looked up as the second set of fireworks went off, slightly startled. Funny, she didn’t think that the city was going to do this again this year. She gasped at a loud crash from the bathroom

“Oh…no,” abandoning dinner, she half-sprinted down the hall and stopped outside the bathroom door “Astra? It’s me, you OK?” she called out “Astra?” she took a breath “I’m coming in,” she announced, putting her hand on the doorknob and slowly pushing the door open “ _oh…Astra_ ,” she breathed, horrified and saddened by what she saw.

Astra sat in the middle of the room, the fallen shower curtain partly draped around her, she had her knees drawn up to her chest and was rocking back and forth trembling and gasping in clear fear and panic as the fireworks continued whistling through the air. Fireworks that probably sounded far too much like artillery fire to Astra’s mind. Alex didn’t know where Astra was right now, in fact she probably didn’t _want_ to know, but wherever it was, it wasn’t pleasant.

“Astra,” Alex hurried to her side and gently rested a hand on Astra’s wet and trembling shoulder. She’d seen this before with Kara, not quite to this level of course, but she knew a panic attack when she saw one “I’m right here” she soothed

“Alex?” Astra panted out

“Yeah?”

Astra whimpered and clutched at her chest “I can’t breathe”

“You’re having a panic attack,” Alex explained, keeping her voice soft and low just like Jeremiah had taught her “my sister used to get them. Just breath, slowly…that’s it…just breath, I’m not going anywhere”

Slowly, Astra’s breathing slowed and steadied out, her trembles began to ease, and the tightness in her form went slack. And, as Alex watched, the wall went up again. With an angry snarl, Astra quickly shrugged Alex’s hands away and staggered to her feet. But Alex didn’t question it, she knew now that it was a defense mechanism, probably from her days in Special Forces; getting close to someone meant you were vulnerable, vulnerability could get you killed. Or worse.

“Much as I appreciate the concern, didn’t your parents ever teach you to _knock_?” Astra scoffed as she grabbed a towel and began to dry herself off

“It’s my apartment” Alex reminded her, stamping down her annoyance

“Well I’m _sorry_ , your majesty,” Astra sneered “but I didn’t _ask_ to stay, you fucking _invited_ me!”

Alex grabbed her arm as she moved to leave

“You know,” Astra began “there are about twenty different, _painful_ ways I could kill or maim you for life” she warned

“Being open doesn’t make you _weak_ , it makes you _human_ ” Alex challenged

“Not for me,” Astra countered, she yanked her arm free from Alex’s grip and marched out of the room, pausing suddenly “where are my clothes?” she demanded

“In the wash,” Alex explained “in case you didn’t notice they’ve got about a year’s worth of dirt on ‘em”

“I didn’t ask you to wash them!” Astra suddenly roared

“Oh my fucking god!” Alex exclaimed “what the hell is wrong with you?! What? You’re miserable and you want everyone else in the entire fucking world to be miserable too? Is that it? Will that make you happy?!”

“You know _nothing_ about me! So don’t _pretend_ that you do!”

“I know more than you think,” Alex hissed “I know that you’re lonely, lonely enough to stop caring about yourself, about others, because you think that no one else cares, so why should you. I know that for some reason you care about me, that you _trust_ me, why else would you come here after breaking into Lord Tech? Why else would bring the evidence with you? And I _know_ —god, do I know—what its like to lose someone close to you”

“You know nothing” Astra reiterated “you _can’t_ kno—”

“I lost my _father_ when I was _twelve fucking years old_! I _know_!” Alex roared “and as I much as I—,” she took a ragged breath “I _know_ that he wouldn’t want me to just… _give up_. Like you have, apparently”

Sighing, the fight having left her, Alex turned to leave, pausing at the quiet sob from behind her

“I lost my sister,” Astra began in a ragged tone “my twin, my niece. There was, was a…fire and she…she didn’t make it,” she curled a hand into a fist “her daughter, my…niece, died that day too and those… _bastards_ didn’t even tell me until a month later because it would have _‘compromised mission security’_. I couldn’t even attend the _funeral_ for fuck’s sake!”

Alex said nothing as she hurried over and gathered Astra into her arms as the woman finally broke…


	8. Familar Relations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Short double update! Enjoy! :=)

******

Alex wasn’t sure how long she sat there, simply holding Astra, but eventually, Astra seemed to come back to herself and slowly sat up, most of her previous arrogance and anger noticeably gone as she sniffled and wiped at her eyes

“Sorry” she mumbled

“It’s fine,” Alex assured her softly “you’re entitled, I think”

Astra chuckled humorlessly

“That’s nice to hear for a change,” she commented as she straightened up, giving Alex an unblocked view of her nude body. Alex cringed as she realized just how many scars Astra’s body was covered with; large scars, small scars, scars of every shape and size littered her body, there didn’t seem to be a spot of her skin that was unblemished

“What are you staring at?” Astra asked suddenly, startling Alex

“Oh…sorry,” she felt her face heat up “just…your scars” she admitted

Astra looked down at her body

“Ah, yes, those,” she chuckled humorlessly again “the one thing they couldn’t erase. Unfortunately”

“Oh, I don’t know,” Alex began “I think they should be put on display,” she explained “they’re a…a badge of honor, a way of saying _‘hey, look, I survived’_ ”

Astra stared at her, slowly approaching the younger woman

“No one’s ever told me that,” she began softly as she reached up and gently cupped Alex’s cheek with a shaking hand “no one” she repeated

“Then maybe,” Alex began as she found herself falling to grey-green eyes again “its about time that someone should” she whispered as she leaned in and closed the gap between them, pressing her lips against Astra’s, only for Astra to suddenly stiffen

“Alex?” she asked as she slowly pulled away “who’s that?”

Turning, Alex blinked as Astra nodded to a photograph on the dresser

“Oh, that’s my sister” she explained, eager to get back to attempting to kiss Astra, but Astra stopped her, gently so, but still stopped her. Moving away, Astra slowly picked up the photograph

“Your…sister” she repeated, as if she couldn’t quite believe it

“Yeah, I know, we don’t look anything alike,” Alex shrugged “of course, that might have something to do with the fact that she’s adopted” she smirked

Astra slowly blinked

“Adopted?” she echoed “Alex, what’s her mother’s name?”

“I don’t see what that has to do with anything”

Astra sucked in a harsh breath, looking like she might break down again. She clenched a hand into a tight fist

“Alex, _please_ , just answer the question. Her mother’s name, what was it?” she took a ragged breath “it was ‘Alura’ wasn’t it?” she asked softly “and her name is ‘Kara’, isn’t it?”

Alex stared at her

“How the hell did you know that?” she asked

Astra let out a breathless, slightly hysterical, giggle

“Because…she’s my niece” she answered…


	9. Trail of Breadcrumbs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're back! Yes, "The Woman with the Sign" is being updated! Enjoy! :=)

******

They hadn’t said a word to each other in over an hour.

Astra sat on the couch, slowly looking through a photo album, while Alex fidgeted and tried to find something to do as she assembled a meager-looking salad. Of course, given what Astra probably normally ate on a daily basis—when she ate that is—Alex’s salad was probably the height of cuisine

“You took her in” Astra’s voice was soft, almost whisper quiet, but startling nonetheless

“We did” Alex agreed, not bothering to turn and look, because looking at Astra meant acknowledging that she was attracted to her sister’s aunt, something which she couldn’t, didn’t want to, do. Because it meant giving up the warm, happy feeling she felt whenever she used to look at Astra

“If I’m her aunt, and you’re her sister, then what does that make us?” Astra’s voice was soft, spoken from just over her shoulder

“Nothing” Alex answered regrettably

“No,” a gentle hand touched her shoulder and turned her around to look up into haunting grey-green eyes “everything” Astra whispered as she leaned in and softly pressed her lips against Alex’s

Alex felt her heart flip, sighing into the kiss, feeling like a dam had burst as she wrapped her arms around Astra’s neck and pulled her closer, breathing in the scent of her own shampoo and the unique, earthy scent of ‘Astra’ as she tangled her fingers in long, wet dark hair.

Breaking apart for air, they both smirked and grinned shyly at each other

“That was…,” Alex took a breath “unexpected”

“You looked like you could use some ‘unexpected’ in your life” Astra quipped. She was about to say more when a loud gurgle made her pause, they both looked down at Astra’s stomach

“Come on, General,” Alex chuckled, playfully poking the other woman in the stomach “let’s get some food into you”

Astra snorted

“I was never an officer” she explained

“Really?” Alex surprised

“Oh god no,” Astra shook her head in clear disgust “just…no, no way”

******

They ate in silence, but it was a comfortable silence, one that didn’t need to be filled with useless talk and idle chitchat

“Well,” Astra leaned back with a sigh, her fork clattering nosily onto her plate “that was good”

Alex snorted

“How bad was it? Really?” she asked

Astra smirked

“Better than having to dig around through a dumpster for a meal” she explained

Alex felt herself blush

“Sorry,” she mumbled “didn’t mean to imply…”

“No, no,” Astra smirked “it’s all right,” she reached out and took Alex’s hand, curling her fingers around Alex’s own “Alex?” she asked “tell me about Kara” she requested

Alex took a breath

“What do you want to know?”

“… _everything_ ” Astra whispered…

******

They talked for what felt like hours, Alex filling Astra in on the years she’d missed with her niece, on what it was like growing up with Kara. Finally, Alex looked up and realized that it was very late, close to midnight

“Oh, damn,” Astra swore as she saw the clock “sorry, didn’t mean to keep you up”

“No, its fine,” Alex shook her head as she stood up, quickly retrieving some blankets and a pillow from the bedroom “here,” she passed them to Astra, who took them looking a tad startled “you’re welcome to stay as long as you like” Alex invited

“Alex, I…”

Alex held up a hand

“Don’t,” she requested “just take the couch. It’s too cold tonight to be sleeping outside” she declared

Astra visibly swallowed

“Thank you” she whispered

“No problem” Alex dismissed

“Oh, Alex?” Astra called out as she turned to leave “can I borrow your computer?” Astra asked, holding up the flash drive

“Oh, right,” Alex quickly retrieved her laptop and sat back down next to Astra “yeah, let’s see what’s on that” she said as the computer booted up

“You don’t have to see it with me,” Astra offered “in fact, you probably shouldn’t,” she added “you work for Lord Tech after all”

“Fat chance,” Alex snorted “that bastard’s gotten away with too many things for too long,” she declared “I want to see him squirm” she hissed as she plugged the flash drive in. The device loaded and then the screen went blank, a dialog box appearing asking for a password

“Great,” Astra sighed “any magic guesses on his password?”

Alex frowned

“What’s the date on this thing?” she asked

“Uh, March of 2015, I think. Why?”

Alex smirked and typed in ‘Mata Hari’. The computer chirped and the words ‘PASSWORD ACCEPTED’ flashed across the screen

“How’d you do that?” Astra asked

Alex grimaced

“Mata Hari is his nickname for me, and I joined Lord Tech in March of 2015,” she grumbled “so…”

“…Mata Hari,” Astra nodded as the files opened one by one in a cascade of information “OK, so…,” Astra leaned forward, examining each document “damn it,” she swore “its not here”

“Are you sure?” Alex asked as she scrutinized each file name herself “maybe it has a different name” she suggested

“No,” Astra shook her head “its not here, it’s gone. Fuck!” she stood up and started to pace “FUCK!!!”

“Hey! Hey!” Alex stood up and gripped Astra’s shoulders “we’ll find it, all right? You can’t destroy every trace of evidence”

“Alex, you don’t understand,” Astra sighed “if I can find the evidence that Lord Tech knowingly manufactured that defective body armor, then I could use it as evidence to expose the operation itself, get them to acknowledge that it happened, to admit how those men died, and get their families some peace of mind and maybe even some recognition, and—”

“…and get your own life back” Alex reasoned not unkindly

“And see Kara again,” Astra agreed quietly “and not just as some homeless woman either”

“Astra,” Alex sighed “Kara won’t care that you’re homeless, all she wants is to see you again, she won’t care how you look or where you’re living, she’ll just be happy to know that you’re alive”

Astra smirked

“You really did grow up with her didn’t you?” she chuckled

Alex nodded

“As for the evidence,” she began “well…we can always go and ask”

“What?” Astra snorted “you mean just walk into Lord’s office and ask for the files?”

“No,” Alex slowly shook her head, a truly mischievous grin crossing her face “I never said anything about asking…”


	10. Entry Points

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double update! Enjoy :=)

******

“Clear lines of sight on all approaches….very little cover…numerous armed guards…”

“You _do_ know that some of us don’t speak ‘special ops’, right?” Alex asked

Astra smirked as she lowered the binoculars and turned back towards Alex

“Sorry,” she apologized with a shrug “old habits”

“Well, just don’t make me pick them up,” Alex grumbled “I’m anti-war and anti-military, thank you very much,” she tapped her hands on the steering wheel in impatience and nerves “and stop fiddling with the heater,” she added, swatting Astra’s hands away from the console “it’s not that cold”

“Sorry”

They were both sitting in Alex’s car, which was parked across the street from the Lord Technologies building

“This is crazy,” Alex shook her head “why did I think of this?”

“Because you want to see justice done just as much as I do,” Astra replied as she peered through the binoculars again “huh, looks like your friend Frank’s on duty tonight” she remarked

“Yeah,” Alex sighed. She reached behind her and awkwardly pulled the backpack from the backseat onto her lap, checking its contents to make sure that they hadn’t missed anything “OK,” she sighed “let’s go”

“Copy that”

“Oh yeah,” Alex muttered as they climbed out of the car “this’ll be fun”

Walking up to the doors, they came into the front lobby without trouble. As Astra had said, Frank was on duty, looking up surprised as they came in

“Danvers, hey,” he greeted jovially “back so soon?”

“Yeah, sorry,” Alex shrugged “look, turns out I left something in my lab earlier tonight. Mind if I go and get it?”

Frank frowned

“Hmm, company policy doesn’t allow that,” he began “ _but_ …yeah. Sure, go ahead”

Alex breathed a sigh of relief

“Thanks, Frank”

He nodded

“Sure,” he chuckled “uh, but your friend’s going to have to stay down here” he warned, nodding towards Astra

Alex sighed

“Frank?” she asked quietly “nothing personal”

“Wha…?” Frank looked at her, confused just seconds before Astra’s hand whipped out, seizing a paperweight off the desk and soundly cold cocking Frank unconscious in one, fluid blow

“Come on,” Astra slipped her arms under Frank’s now-limp arms “let’s get him somewhere quiet”

“Yeah” Alex grunted as she grabbed Frank’s legs, wondering just what she was doing…

******

The elevator on the fortieth floor dinged as the doors slid open. Astra leaned out, cautiously checking both sides of the corridor before nodding Alex along and down the hall towards Maxwell Lord’s office

“Where’s his security?” Astra questioned “you’d think there’d be someone patrolling this part of the building”

“Beats me,” Alex shrugged “come on, let’s get your evidence before I grow a conscience and call the cops”

Slowly, they reached the doors to Lord’s office

“All right, here goes,” Astra crouched down and moved to pick the lock, but stopped suddenly “it's open” she announced

“Why would it be open?” Alex questioned

“Let’s find out,” Slowly, Astra pushed the doors open, freezing at the sight that confronted her “fuck” she swore

“Ladies,” Maxwell Lord smirked from behind his desk “won’t you come on in?” he invited "I've been expecting you..."


	11. Extraction

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're back! Yes, "The Woman With the Sign" is finally being updated! Please enjoy :=)

******

Maxwell Lord sat behind his desk like some lord of the manor; his body language announced that he was confident, self-assured, and even enjoying this.

Alex had never wanted to punch him more than she did now

“Coffee anyone?” he offered

“No thanks,” Astra replied “am I to assume that I was ‘allowed’ to take that flash drive?”

“Very good,” Max nodded. He smirked in that condescending way that Alex hated “now, Alex,” he began “I’m surprised, I really am, I’d have expected some vagrant like her to break in, but not you”

“You…don’t know who I am, do you?” Astra asked slowly “no,” she shook her head “even you can’t get a hold of those records and it irks you. That’s why you haven’t called the cops or even your private security forces yet, you’re hoping to pump us for information, offer to forget this whole matter in exchange for my identity”

Max smirked

“Really?” he asked “now why would I care to know who you are? You’re clearly just some homeless woman Alex here duped to help her in breaking in”

Astra smirked as two of Max’s private security guards came in, the ones on the company payroll, who could afford nice Armani suits and got paid far more than Alex did to just mostly stand around all day looking tough

“Oh…,” Astra grinned “I’m far more than ‘ _just some homeless woman_ ’,” she hissed as one guard’s hand closed on her shoulder. In a lightening quick move, Astra spun, twisting the man’s arm, knocking him to the ground and looping one leg around his neck, before wrenching his upper body sideways, his arm breaking with an awful _snapping_ sound as he howled in agony before Astra swiftly silenced him with a quick sucker punch.

Before the other guard had any time to process what was happening, Astra had vaulted over his partner and soundly slammed him to the floor, knocking him out with one hard punch to the jaw.

“Now then,” she straightened up, one of the guard’s guns in her hand “I’m going ask questions and you’re going to answer” she stated as she calmly, expertly, loaded the gun

Max snorted

“You don’t have the guts to shoot me,” he scoffed “you _need_ me” he boasted

“Max,” Alex interrupted “don’t test her. Really, just…don’t”

“Oh, you’re an expert in psychology now are you, Alex?” he scoffed “so you know exactly what she’ll—HOLY SHIT!!” he jerked back as the bullet tore through the upholstery of his chair “you fucking bitch! You shot me! I can’t believe you shot me!” he raged

“I can’t believe I missed,” Astra drawled “I want all the files on the M-X 21 body armor. Now” she ordered

“She’ll do it,” Alex warned “trust me, she’s not exactly stable”

Max yelped and jerked back as another bullet whizzed past him, this time destroying a vase on the shelf behind his desk

“Hmm, I’m getting closer” Astra remarked

“All right! All right!” Max panted out “all right” he turned to the computer on his desk and started typing

“No tricks, Lord” Astra warned

“No…of course not” Lord chuckled as he suddenly stabbed down at a key, an alarm blaring throughout the building. Grunting, Astra drew back the handgun and pistol-whipped Lord unconscious before shoving his limp body aside and then hunching over the computer and frantically typing 

“Come on, come on, yes!” she hurriedly inserted the flash drive

“Astra!” Alex warned

“Almost there, almost—yes!” she yanked the flash drive out and, grabbing Alex’s arm, all but dove out in the hall. Kicking open the doors to the stairwell, Astra ushered Alex inside, shoving her against the wall, a hand over her mouth

“No security cameras,” she whispered “but keep quiet and do _exactly_ as I say when I say it, no questions asked, and I promise you that we’ll get out of here without being arrested or shot. All right?”

Alex nodded, and Astra removed her hand

“OK,” she whispered “we’d better hurry, they’re already shutting down the elevators and standard police response is fifteen minutes. Let’s move” she hissed as they took the steps two at a time…

******

Using the service entrances, they slipped out of the building just as the NCPD pulled up with a full SWAT team

“Act natural” Astra murmured as they both, amazingly, were able to quietly slip by the crowd of police officers, the majority of NCPD officers more concerned with establishing a perimeter and keeping civilians out of harms way. As they walked, Alex watched as Astra deftly relieved one detective on scene of her badge and continue on, absently flashing the badge to anyone who did question their presence as they made their to Alex’s car and, amid all the confusion, quietly sped off into the night…

******

Entering her apartment, Alex took a breath, feeling her hands trembling violently as she felt Astra’s hands on her shoulders, steadying her as she turned around to face the older woman. Still panting harshly, Alex suddenly surged forward, pulling Astra into a heated kissed, which Astra returned eagerly as they blindly stumbled back towards Alex’s bedroom, stripping their clothes off as they did, Alex’s hands roaming Astra’s bare skin, mapping her scars and battle wounds…

******

“I can’t believe we just did that” Alex breathed into the darkness of the room, sweat cooling on her skin, muscles aching in a delightful way that she hadn’t felt in an embarrassingly long time

“What the sex? Or the aggravated assault and theft?” Astra countered

“Both” Alex shrugged

“The assault and theft had to be done,” Astra shrugged “and the sex…well that’s all on you”

“Oh yeah right,” Alex laughed “please! You wanted it just as badly as I did, otherwise you would have tied me into a pretzel with your special ops training”

“Hmm” Astra shrugged noncommittally as she pulled Alex closer as they both drifted off to sleep…

******

Waking up the next morning, Alex shuffled into her kitchen to find Astra sitting on her couch, the flash drive plugged into her laptop as Astra scrolled through its contents

“You stayed” Alex realized

Astra looked up at her, smiling softly

“Nowhere else to go, really” she shrugged as she patted the cushion next to her. Grabbing a quick cup of coffee, Alex joined the ex-solider on the couch 

“What are you doing?” Alex wondered as she snuggled up to Astra

“I’m double-checking the files,” Astra explained “making sure that they are what they say they are”

“And?”

“Looks like,” Astra nodded as she tiredly leaned back against the couch “all there” she sighed as Alex leaned in and read the text on the screen

_…a possible defect in the manufacturing process of the M-X 21 may result in severe fracturing or splintering of the ceramic plating, causing severe injury and/or death to the wearer. It is the opinion of the members of the design team that the product be recalled effectively immediately for further study and examination of the issue to prevent any injury or loss of life to United States service members_

Below that was a line of text stating that the manufacture of the body armor and subsequent sale to the Department of Defense was ‘proceeding on schedule’, with no indication the defect was ever resolved or otherwise investigated prior to entering mass production.

“Christ” Alex muttered

“Hmm,” Astra sighed quietly “Alex?” she began

“Hmm?”

“What are we doing?” Astra asked “I mean…,” she gestured vaguely between them “last night, at Lord Tech, your bedroom. What are we doing?”

“I don’t really know,” Alex admitted “and as much I hate the thought of being a wanted fugitive for the rest of my life, I can’t really deny the fact it doesn’t sound so bad if you’re with me”

“That was sappy, Danvers” Astra groaned playfully, suddenly tensing at a knock at the door. Looking between each other, Alex got up, peering through the peephole

“It’s Kara,” she announced

Astra stiffened

“No, it’s all right, I called her,” Alex assured her as she opened the door “hey, Kara” she greeted as Kara Danvers—formerly Kara Zorel—walked inside

“Alex, hey,” she grinned “sorry about dropping by so early, but you said it was…,” she trailed off into stunned silence as she saw Astra sitting on the couch “Aunt Astra?” she whispered in clear disbelief as Astra slowly, awkwardly, stood up

“Hello, little one,” she smiled softly “it’s…been a long time, hasn’t it?” she asked rhetorically as Kara simply stared...


	12. Dishonorable Discharge

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double update! Chapter TWELVE! Enjoy! :=)

******

“Homeless?” Kara echoed after Astra and Alex had finished explaining the situation to her

“Basically,” Alex shrugged as Astra made a phone call in the kitchen to someone that Alex probably didn’t want to know the identity of, lest she end up dead. She awkwardly sat down next to Kara “I didn’t even know who she was at first;” she explained “she just seemed like some woman who was down on her luck and needed some help”

“And then when you found out that she’s my aunt?” Kara wondered. As always, there was no accusation in her tone, just curiosity

“I wanted to help her even more” Alex explained

“But,” Kara shook her head “I don’t understand, how did she end up homeless?”

Alex frowned

“That’s…kinda hard to explain,” she began hesitantly “not to mention illegal” she muttered

“It was a botched operation,” Astra explained as she came back into the room “I can’t go into details, but basically I was censored by the government for trying to expose government and corporate corruption”

“And the government…made you homeless to stop you” Kara echoed somewhat incredulously

“I know, I know,” Astra sighed “it all sounds like something out a Mel Gibson movie, but it’s the truth, Kara,” she ran a hand through her hair “we have proof of it, but the problem is getting it out there”

“I can do that” Kara said instantly

Alex and Astra both looked at each other in surprise

“Kara…” Alex began, trailing off with a disbelieving shake of her head

“We— _I_ —can’t ask you to do that” Astra objected

“Well, it’s a good thing that you’re not asking, isn’t it?” Kara grinned “look,” she began in a serious tone “if what you’re saying is true, then that means that Lord covered up dozens of deaths or injuries which were caused as a direct result of his faulty body armor. Which means that he’s at fault, its negligent homicide” she explained

Astra’s eyebrows rose

“I see that your mother’s legal skill rubbed off on you” she remarked

Kara blushed

“Well, that and plus I dated a lawyer for a while” she shrugged

“Didn’t work out?” Astra wondered

“No,” Kara shook her head “we’re still friends though,” she added brightly “she even introduced me to the guy I’m dating right now”

“She?” Astra echoed, looking even more surprised “things have changed, haven’t they?”

“I’ll explain later,” Alex interrupted “so, we’re really doing this?” she wondered “’cause if we are, I feel the need to point out that we will all be arrested if we’re caught”

Astra smirked

“Then I guess we’ll just have to make sure that we won’t get caught” she chuckled

“Oh yeah,” Alex muttered “that’s really helpful”

******

CatCo Worldwide Media was sparsely populated when the three women entered. Most the reporters had left for the night, leaving only the nightshift on staff as Kara sat down behind her desk and booted up her computer. Once the computer was ready she plugged in the flash drive—separate from the one stolen from Lord Tech—and uploaded the expose she’d written earlier back at Alex’s apartment

“OK, article’s up,” she nodded, holding out a hand for the other flash drive, which she took from a reluctant Alex and plugged it in, uploading the report from Lord Tech R&D as well, attaching it to the article and uploading the whole thing to CatCo’s website “done” she whispered as the elevator suddenly dinged and three men in suits entered the room, swiftly approaching Kara’s desk

“Wow, you guys are fast” Astra commented as one man held up a badge

“FBI,” he introduced the group “would you ladies come with us, please?”

******

The interrogation room looked very much like those seen in the movies and on TV: a small room, with only a single door and what was clearly a two-way mirror on one wall. Sitting at the lone table, handcuffed to a large ring bolted to the table, Astra idly shifted in the chair as the door opened, a large agent in an ill-fitting suit stepping inside

“Hi, Hank,” Astra smirked “long time no see”

“You know,” Hank began as he leaned against the wall, arms crossed “I could have _sworn_ that you were dead until you called me”

Astra shrugged

“I’m like the common cold; hard to kill and I have a way of getting under people’s skin”

Hank smirked and shook his head

“You always were a smart-ass, Gunny” he muttered

“Well, thank you, Colonel” Astra drawled

“How the hell did you get my phone number anyway?” Hank wondered

Astra smirked

“I have my ways,” she chuckled. She leaned forward “you know what I was after, no matter what Maxwell Lord may say”

“I do,” Hank nodded with a sigh “and I know that you just uploaded classified information onto the internet”

“Technically, I didn’t personally upload anything,” Astra pointed out “and, technically, its corporate information, not governmental”

Hank scowled

“You _do_ that you could face up to ten years, possibly even the death sentence, for that?” he warned as Astra leaned forward

“And do you know that I’ve spent the last twelve years living on the streets?” she countered “believe me; prison doesn’t sound too bad right about now; a roof over your head, three square meals a day. Not too shabby if you ask me”

Hank assessed her for a long moment before sighing and then coming over and un-cuffing her

“Come on,” he gripped her arm tightly as he led her out of the room and down the hall “don’t make me regret this,” he warned as he opened the door to Alex’s interrogation room “Ms. Danvers? You’re free to go” he announced

“I am?” Alex echoed as he came over and un-cuffed her

“You are, as is your sister,” he explained as he led into another interrogation room and swiftly un-cuffed Kara “now, all of you, get the hell out of my sight” he growled…

******

“That guy a friend of yours or something?” Alex asked as the three climbed into the elevator

“Old comrade, actually,” Astra corrected “remember I told you that I was only one of two survivors from that botched mission?” Alex nodded “Hank’s the other survivor” she explained

“You really have some interesting friends, Aunt Astra” Kara muttered as they stepped out of the lobby and into the pre-dawn light

“Christ, its already dawn,” Alex groaned “so, if that guy was part of your unit, why didn’t he go to bat for you?” she asked

“He couldn’t,” Astra shook her head “erasing a nobody gunnery sergeant like me is easy, but not a decorated colonel,” she shrugged “I don’t know what they did to him, what they said, but somehow they were able to keep him quiet,” she shook her head “you have to understand, girls, Hank’s a good man, an honorable man. But sometimes honorable men have to face dishonor in order to save someone else’s”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Points to anyone who can figure out which Mel Gibson movie I'm talking about :=)


	13. Homebase

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter THIRTEEN! Enjoy :=)

******

“ _Continuing our top story. Billionaire industrialist Maxwell Lord was arrested on more than a dozen corruption charges yesterday evening. Federal prosecutors allege that Lord knowingly approved the manufacture and distribution of defective body armor to U.S. soldiers, which led to the injury or death of an undisclosed amount of troops, including those in the Special Forces. Prosecutors are also, according to one source, preparing to possibly file a charge of negligent homicide against Lord for those deaths. This all came about when an unknown individual posted a series of sensitive documents from Lord Technologies that directly implicate Lord—and possibly several other members of the company’s administration—in the distribution and sale of the defective body armor. The individual or individuals remain anonymous, although several hacking groups have laid claim to the breach, the FBI and the Department of Justice has refused to confirm which, if any, of these groups may have been responsible. In related news, General Samuel Lane, former head of the U.S. Army’s Special Operations branch, was among those individuals in the government to be implicated in what is rapidly becoming a conspiracy to cover up knowledge of the defective body armor…_ ”

“It’s over,” Astra breathed as she stared at the TV in disbelief “it’s really over”

“Looks like,” Alex agreed, equally stunned “so…what happens now?”

“I don’t know,” Astra shrugged “I suppose I get my life back now”

“So, what are you going to do with it?” Alex wondered

Astra shook her head

“I don’t know,” she muttered “I’ve been on my own for so long that…that I don’t know what to do anymore” she admitted

“I have a suggestion,” Alex began, her hand curling around Astra’s own “stay” she whispered

“Stay?” Astra echoed

“Stay,” Alex nodded “here, with me”

“Oh, Alex, I couldn’t possibly—” Astra’s protest was cut off as Alex leaned in and soundly kissed her. As she pulled away, Alex smirked at Astra’s decidedly dumbstruck expression

“You know,” Astra began, smirking “I think I could stay”

“Good” Alex grinned…

******

**One year later…**

“She’s late” Alex muttered

“She’s probably nervous” Astra dismissed

“No, she passed ‘nervous’ ten seconds ago. Now, we’re entering ‘runaway bride’ territory”

Astra sighed

“I’ll go look for her,” she grumbled. Rounding the corner, she found the right door and knocked “Kara? There are about a dozen people who are waiting for you out here”

The door suddenly opened, a frantic-looking Kara leaning out

“I can’t do this” she panted out

Astra smirked

“Yes, you can,” she grabbed her niece by the arm “and you are. Come on,” grunting, she dragged Kara back towards the main part of the chapel “now,” she began as she stopped outside the doors “stand up straight, deep breath, hold, and…exhale. Good. Now, repeat after me: ‘I published an article that took down a corrupt billionaire and half the former leaders of the U.S.’s Special Forces, I can go through with something as simple as a wedding’.”

Kara vehemently shook her head

“No I can’t”

“Oh for god’s sake, Kara,” she gave Kara slight shove towards the door as the organ started up inside “weddings are _easy_. Now, marriage…that’s hard”

Kara gulped nervously and tightly squeezed Astra’s hand

“You guys are sticking by me, right?” she asked “no more law breaking? No more ‘license to kill’?”

“No” Astra laughed

“Promise?”

Astra gave Kara’s hand a tight squeeze in response

“Promise” she vowed as she walked her niece down the aisle towards her handsome, soon-to-be husband. And as Astra retook her place besides Alex as Kara and James recited their vows, she wondered how she got here. One year ago, she was a half-crazed vagrant living on the streets, a non-entity. Now, she had her identity back, she had a home again, she had her niece again, and above all, she had Alex.

Smiling at the young woman as Kara and James kissed; she took Alex’s hand tightly squeezed…

******

The reception was decidedly low-key, and everyone was clearly having a good time. Standing in an unobtrusive corner, Astra watched the guests—mostly Kara’s friends and coworkers—milled about, her special operations training having yet to leave her as she mentally mapped out escape routes and access points

“Astra”

She stiffened at the voice behind her. Only one man could sneak up her like that

“Hank,” she acknowledged “what brings you by?”

“I just came to see how you’re doing,” Hank replied “saw the announcement in the paper”

“Well, I’m fine, as you can see” Astra nodded curtly

“Maxwell Lord was convicted today,” Hank rumbled “guilty on all counts. The families of the troops that died are also planning on filing a civil suit against him too”

“Good,” Astra nodded “they should. Now why are you really here?”

“Have you found a job yet?”

“I have,” Astra nodded “it may no be the most glamorous job in the world, but it’s a job,” she explained “and, more importantly, its _not_ a government job”

Hank finally turned to face her, smirking

“Fair enough, Gunny,” he nodded “but, if you ever get bored…”

“I won’t”

“…you know where to find me,” with a polite nod Hank turned to leave “enjoy the party”

Shaking her head, Astra put thoughts of Hank out of her mind as she found Alex on the dance floor. Skillfully sweeping the young woman up she swept her across the floor

“Aren’t you usually supposed to ask someone to dance first before you sweep them off their feet?” Alex wondered

“Usually” Astra shrugged, smirking

Shaking her head, Alex just laughed and pulled Astra closer…

**END**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that's it! The final chapter of "The Woman With the Sign", I hope everyone enjoyed it, and I thank everyone who left comments and kudos and who stayed with this odd idea.
> 
> Thanks again :=)
> 
> \--AXEe :=)

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you thought :=)


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